Power Traditions
AX.GHW.08.00 - Power Tradition Overview
Supernatural power in The Veil is not magic in the fantasy sense, not a discipline studied from texts and applied through formulas. It is the result of biology, contract, or intimate proximity to something beyond ordinary human experience. Dhampir develop Blood Sense because the bloodline creates it. Haunts access Mediumship because they have already crossed the liminal threshold and understand its geography from the inside. The Marked carry traditions that are products of their creditor's investment, not their own ambition. Skinchangers who practice Pact-Shifting are formalizing what the animal in them already does.
What this means in practice: power traditions in this catalog are almost always already present in a character before they formalize them. A Haunt with Mediumship is not learning something new, they are learning to do deliberately what their death-mark has always made possible. A Dhampir developing Blood Sense is not acquiring a power, they are putting structure around something the bloodline provides whether they want it or not.
This has one significant implication: power use, even when controlled, is always authentic. A practitioner is never performing something external to themselves. The cost of using these traditions, Veil Strain, and eventually Backlash, is not a penalty for overreach. It is the cost of being what they are, pushed harder than the body or the contract was meant to sustain in a single scene.
What Traditions Are Not
Traditions in this catalog are not generic arcane systems available to anyone with enough study time. Each tradition has a lineage or contract affinity. Humans without lineage or contract access can occasionally develop traditions through extraordinary circumstances, apprenticeship under a practitioner of relevant lineage, a specific formative experience, a rare secondhand covenant, but these are exceptions the GM adjudicates case by case, not an open door.
Traditions as Odd Talents
Each supernatural tradition functions as an Odd Talent per AX.C.04. Standard rules apply:
- The roll is: Governing Attribute + Tradition (+ Focus if applicable) vs Threshold.
- Tradition dice are purchased at character creation from the Talent budget (AX.C.06) or acquired through Advancement (AX.C.13) at the cost of Governing Attribute × 2 XP for a new Tradition at 1D, or current value × 2 XP to improve.
- Maximum Tradition rating: 5D. Maximum Focus rating: 3D.
- A character may hold only one Tradition unless a specific Profession Progression Track explicitly grants additional access.
- Each Tradition has a Default Attribute reflecting its most common governing expression. Players may choose any Attribute at character creation; this choice is permanent.
Power Access
A character gains access to a Tradition through one of three paths:
Lineage Access: Some lineages, primarily the Marked, whose contract is itself the tradition's source, may receive Tradition access directly from their Lineage entry. Where granted, the character receives the Tradition at 1D at no Talent cost; subsequent improvement costs apply normally.
Profession Access: Most traditions are accessed through a Profession that lists them as Power Access. The character receives the Tradition at 1D at no Talent cost.
Affinity Bonus: Where a lineage file notes strong affinity with a tradition (Haunt + Mediumship, Faeborn + Glamourist, Dhampir + Blood Sense), Professions built specifically around that lineage's tradition grant access at 2D rather than 1D. This reflects the tradition being partially developed through the character's nature before any formal training. Profession files specify where this applies.
Independent Study: A character without Lineage or Profession access may pursue a Tradition through Extended Downtime. Requirements: a practitioner mentor with at least 3D in the relevant Tradition, one week of Deliberate Training, and a narrative context that makes the access plausible. Cost: Governing Attribute × 2 XP for the initial 1D. The Marked traditions (Hollow Pact, Sacred Fire) are not available through Independent Study; they require an active compact or covenant relationship.
Duplicate Access: If a character qualifies through both Lineage and Profession access, they begin with 2D at no additional cost (per AX.C.09.03 duplicate access rule).
Threshold Scale
All Tradition rolls use the standard scale:
| Threshold | Scale of Effect |
|---|---|
| Easy (1) | Minor; instantaneous or brief; Touch or Close range; readily reversible |
| Standard (2) | Moderate; scene duration; single target within Near range; recoverable |
| Difficult (3) | Significant; extended duration; small area or multiple targets; requires Short Rest to end |
| Hard (4) | Major; lasts until Long Rest; large area or persistent; requires counter-tradition to reverse |
| Epic (5+) | Profound or permanent; wide area; fundamentally alters a subject, space, or situation |
Excess successes above the Threshold may be allocated to: extend duration by one step, increase range by one Band, increase affected targets by one, or enhance a secondary effect as noted per application.
Tradition Index
| Tradition | Category | Default Attribute | Lineage Affinity | File |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mediumship | Resonance | Wit | Haunt | AX.GHW.08.01 |
| Glamourist | Resonance | Wit | Faeborn | AX.GHW.08.02 |
| Blood Sense | Resonance | Wit | Dhampir | AX.GHW.08.03 |
| Hollow Pact | Force | Wit | Marked (Shadow-Bound) | AX.GHW.08.04 |
| Sacred Fire | Force | Wit | Marked (Light-Bound) | AX.GHW.08.05 |
| Pact-Shifting | Form | Body | Skinchanger | AX.GHW.08.06 |
Human lineage has no tradition affinity, access through Profession or Independent Study only.